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Once again taken from Moviepoopshoot.com - Here is the second part of Lunch box's diary from the set of his next movie 'Jersy Girl':
JERSEY GIRL DIARY
By Kevin Smith
I guess I could get all hyperbolic and describe the production thus far in terms so incredibly glowing that the cynical and pessimistic reader will swear it all reeks of spin control. But rather than subject you folks to that ...
All right, fook it -- I'm gonna subject you folks to that.
JERSEY GIRL is, hands-down, the best movie we've ever made.
Granted, we're only in week two, but I feel comfortable going on the record with that confession. Now for some of you, calling this flick our best probably isn't saying much (as there are cats who feel we've never done anything cinematically worthwhile). For others, you'll never agree (the hardcore MALLRATS won't find much to love about this flick). But for me, as my jaw drops watching the performances spark to life while we shoot, as I marvel at the dailies every night, and smile widely when Scott and I cut the scenes together over the weekends, that's the impression I'm getting. This flick certainly isn't the funniest film we've ever made (far from it), but it's already the most visually rich affair, with the most thoroughly realized characters I've ever had the pleasure of watching any of my casts commit to celluloid. As we come to the close of week two of our scheduled 11 weeks of shooting, for the first time in my career, I feel like a full-fledged filmmaker, as opposed to just a writer who directs his own stuff.
Rehearsals went incredibly well. We were scheduled for two full weeks, but by the end of day one, it was clear that we could've started shooting the next day. In the midst of rehearsals, we took time out to head into Philly's famous Sigma Sound (where Bowie laid down tracks, many moons ago) to record a song for the big musical number in the flick.
Yes -- I said big musical number. Where's GLAAD now, as I prepare to unabashedly unfurl and let fly my drama-fag flag by showcasing my adoration of show tunes?
When the rehearsal weeks came to a close, we did a pre-shoot day, which technically would be Day One of the shoot, but it's classified as a Camera Test so as to not be reflected in the budget as part of Principal Photography, all while giving us a jump on the schedule. Essentially, the Pre-Shoot Day is a dress rehearsal for the shoot itself, as this preliminary day affords the cast and crew a hint of what it's going to be like to work together.
The most startling aspect of the pre-shoot day for me was that we did two beautiful crane shots. What's weird about this is that we've done maybe two crane shots total in all of our previous movies combined (all right -- really it's about five or six), and there we were, not even the first day of the schedule, and already Vilmos was making with the cranes.
The crane we tow around with us, created by our Key Grip Dicky Deats, is an amazing and storied piece of equipment, which won its maker an Academy Award for Technical Achievement back in '83. Dubbed "The Little Big Crane,” it lives on our Grip truck and was constructed in fairly easy-to-transport pieces (but, mind you -- this is coming from a guy who just watches Grips move shoot around; so for all I know, those pieces are, in reality, heavy as fook) that can be assembled rather quickly at any location. In other words, we've got this crane that's so pliable, we could take it up the elevator to the 50th floor of a skyscraper (which we've already done), or throw it together to make a simple shot of a dude walking from his car to his front door look far more impressive than the act really is.
There's one Little Big Crane shot in particular -- a crane-into-a-closeup of Raquel -- that's so gorgeous and powerful, it changes the shape of the script altogether. After watching it a few times, I opted to drop two smaller scenes that precede it, so as to make that shot the first moment we see Raquel's character in the movie. Granted, the cut-before-we-shot-'em scenes weren't that long (maybe a half-page each), but still -- me cutting dialogue out in favor of visuals? Letting pictures tell a story instead of words? That's akin to Hitler saying "The Jews ain't so bad. Let's turn the Reich over to 'em."
This is just one of the benefits of working with guys who've been making films since I was in Huggies -- the vast repository of know-how and experience they offer. There's nary a problem that either Vilmos, Dicky or Bill O'Leary (Roger Deakin’s Gaffer -- or chief lighting technician -- who Vilmos secured for this flick) can't suss out. I tell ya', we're so technically adept this time around, I feel like Spielberg -- only, y'know ... without the desire to replace the guns in my previous flicks with walkie-talkies.
Speaking of which, we wanted to use a clip from JAWS in JERSEY GIRL -- the shot of Quint being eaten by the shark. It was the focus of a short scene between George Carlin's character Bart and his granddaughter (the titular Jersey Girl) in which he used the movie to instruct the child of the perils of swimming at the beach. The word came back from Amblin that Spielberg didn't want to license scenes featuring the shark, based on the primitive special effects in the flick (i.e., the shark looks fake).
When we chose another scene that didn't showcase Bruce himself (we opted for the death of the raft-riding Kintner boy -- the one whose remains the Mayor didn't want to see spill out all over the dock), the word came back that Spielberg didn't want to license the use of any scenes in JAWS that reminded people how scary the movie was.
The long and short of this story, kids?
I smell a digitally manipulated re-release of JAWS in which the shark menaces Amity with a walkie-talkie.
DAY ONE -- THE BIG SCENE
Up first, my wife made out with Jason Biggs, as Affleck looked on. Shortly after that, we started shooting the actual scene.
We started with a humorous, light scene, set at the Christmas Party thrown annually by the music division of Mandel/Kirschner, the publicity firm that Ollie Trinke' (Ben's character) works for. The bit serves as an introduction to Biggsy's character, Arthur Brickman -- Ollie's right-hand man. Jen (my Jen, not Affleck's Jen) plays Susan, Arthur's office paramour, and the two of them turned in ace performances that acted as a sort of palate-cleanser for the moment that follows: the meeting of Ollie Trinke' and Gertrude Steiney (Jen Lopez).
If you're ever shooting a movie about two people falling in love, I can't urge you strongly enough to cast a pair of people who are actually falling in love. The chemistry between Ben and Jen is so palpable, you could almost bottle it and sell it as an aphrodisiac. Take after take, we watched Ben and Jen (who we couldn't have cast as love-at-first-sighters at a better time in their lives) flirt through a rapid-fire-dialogue dance of movie meet-cute. But this wasn't just art imitating life; somehow in the midst of all that smolder, they managed to provide us with a pair of performances that reminded this little black duck why he's always worshipped at the Altar of Affleck, and is now currently constructing a Lopez Basilica as we speak. Honestly, the performances they gave were nothing short of spellbinding.
Take after take, Jen offered up a myriad of options -- so much so, that when the time comes, it's a tough scene to cut. Every time we rolled, while delivering the same scripted lines, Jen provided something new, delicious, and real to choose from. I almost want to include three or four different versions of the same scene in the flick, just so the audience can see what we're seeing on the set. Even those familiar with how good she was in OUT OF SIGHT will be taken aback by how wonderful a performance Jen's giving in our little love story. And for the curious (or for those who'd believe what they read in the tabloids), Jen's not only a really sweet person who's easy to love (partly because she's very genuine, partly because of how very smitten she is with a guy I adore and think the world of), she's also the finest actress I've ever worked with to date.
But Bender's no slouch either -- far from it. The man's turning in what is, for my money, his finest hour yet -- which is saying a lot, as I've always felt his CHASING AMY and GOOD WILL HUNTING performances would never be beat. But not only has he beat 'em, he's bludgeoned the shet out of them and left 'em for dead atop the body of already strong work he's accrued since he first trod the boards for us as the guy who liked to fook girls in an uncomfortable place, way back in the day. Along with the charming, smart, witty work that defines all of his performances, Affleck's turned in some really moving stuff thus far as well. If his "I love you -- and not in a friendly way ..." speech in AMY brought tears to your eyes, bring a whole box of tissues when you go to see this flick -- because Ben's got a scene with the kid that'll just flat-out break your heart -- even if you hate children.
All the while, Vilmos has been rolling two cameras simultaneously, capturing different sizes of the same set-ups. It's a time-saving method of shooting coverage, but it also means that by day's end, we've easily shot 15,000 feet of film. But footage-burning be damned, this is beautiful stuff. Vilmos' moody, sexy lighting of our trusty production designer Robert "Ratface" Holtzman and Art Director Elise Viola's gorgeous Manhattan office and slow-moving camera crawls that lead to dazzling, killer close-ups make this the best-looking scene in any View Askew movie ever (big ups also go out to Diane Lederman, who fleshed out Ollie's world with her office décor, and Buster Pile, who built the set on the Naval Yard soundstage in our adopted city of Philadelphia).
By the end of week two, we'd shot Ollie and Gertie's post-introduction dinner, an intense and somewhat sad scene involving Ben and Biggs, Ollie and Gertie's first fight (of sorts), one of the three crowds in front of which Ben's gotta deliver speeches, a more dramatic-this-time-around George Carlin as Ollie's dad, Bart, the ever-genius Stephen Root and equally genius Mike Star as Bart's friends Greenie and Block, and stellar little newcomer Raquel Castro as the JERSEY GIRL in question. All of the stuff is dynamite.
But the week-two capper was a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. shoot of the flick's opening scene, the actual Christmas Party. Staged at the Top of the Tower (the 50th floor of a tall-ass building on Arch Street), this is the scene that introduces Ollie as he offers up a five- minute toast to his employees that concludes with an awkwardly warbled and impeccably danced rendition of a classic 80's old-school rap tune. Remember Spender's moves from "It's Your Birthday" in AMY? This blows that out of the water. Affleck clearly missed his calling as a Solid Gold Dancer. Christ on the Cross, if he didn't knock that scene out of the park!
My thanks go out to the tireless crowd who provided massive energy in that room for 12 hours, giving Spender something to work off of. Like the crowd in their sister scene from the Town Hall shoot the week before, these cats gave a tremendous collective performance, as good and lively by the last take as they were on the first.
I wish I had dish to write about -- like how shet's falling apart, or who's fooking with our movie at the moment. But the truth is, it's blowjos all around, as things couldn't be going more smoothly -- which may make for a boring column, but sure makes for a great movie.
---Check out http://moviepoopshoot.com/jerseygirl/ for the artice complete with uncensored swear words and pictures!
JERSEY GIRL DIARY
By Kevin Smith
I guess I could get all hyperbolic and describe the production thus far in terms so incredibly glowing that the cynical and pessimistic reader will swear it all reeks of spin control. But rather than subject you folks to that ...
All right, fook it -- I'm gonna subject you folks to that.
JERSEY GIRL is, hands-down, the best movie we've ever made.
Granted, we're only in week two, but I feel comfortable going on the record with that confession. Now for some of you, calling this flick our best probably isn't saying much (as there are cats who feel we've never done anything cinematically worthwhile). For others, you'll never agree (the hardcore MALLRATS won't find much to love about this flick). But for me, as my jaw drops watching the performances spark to life while we shoot, as I marvel at the dailies every night, and smile widely when Scott and I cut the scenes together over the weekends, that's the impression I'm getting. This flick certainly isn't the funniest film we've ever made (far from it), but it's already the most visually rich affair, with the most thoroughly realized characters I've ever had the pleasure of watching any of my casts commit to celluloid. As we come to the close of week two of our scheduled 11 weeks of shooting, for the first time in my career, I feel like a full-fledged filmmaker, as opposed to just a writer who directs his own stuff.
Rehearsals went incredibly well. We were scheduled for two full weeks, but by the end of day one, it was clear that we could've started shooting the next day. In the midst of rehearsals, we took time out to head into Philly's famous Sigma Sound (where Bowie laid down tracks, many moons ago) to record a song for the big musical number in the flick.
Yes -- I said big musical number. Where's GLAAD now, as I prepare to unabashedly unfurl and let fly my drama-fag flag by showcasing my adoration of show tunes?
When the rehearsal weeks came to a close, we did a pre-shoot day, which technically would be Day One of the shoot, but it's classified as a Camera Test so as to not be reflected in the budget as part of Principal Photography, all while giving us a jump on the schedule. Essentially, the Pre-Shoot Day is a dress rehearsal for the shoot itself, as this preliminary day affords the cast and crew a hint of what it's going to be like to work together.
The most startling aspect of the pre-shoot day for me was that we did two beautiful crane shots. What's weird about this is that we've done maybe two crane shots total in all of our previous movies combined (all right -- really it's about five or six), and there we were, not even the first day of the schedule, and already Vilmos was making with the cranes.
The crane we tow around with us, created by our Key Grip Dicky Deats, is an amazing and storied piece of equipment, which won its maker an Academy Award for Technical Achievement back in '83. Dubbed "The Little Big Crane,” it lives on our Grip truck and was constructed in fairly easy-to-transport pieces (but, mind you -- this is coming from a guy who just watches Grips move shoot around; so for all I know, those pieces are, in reality, heavy as fook) that can be assembled rather quickly at any location. In other words, we've got this crane that's so pliable, we could take it up the elevator to the 50th floor of a skyscraper (which we've already done), or throw it together to make a simple shot of a dude walking from his car to his front door look far more impressive than the act really is.
There's one Little Big Crane shot in particular -- a crane-into-a-closeup of Raquel -- that's so gorgeous and powerful, it changes the shape of the script altogether. After watching it a few times, I opted to drop two smaller scenes that precede it, so as to make that shot the first moment we see Raquel's character in the movie. Granted, the cut-before-we-shot-'em scenes weren't that long (maybe a half-page each), but still -- me cutting dialogue out in favor of visuals? Letting pictures tell a story instead of words? That's akin to Hitler saying "The Jews ain't so bad. Let's turn the Reich over to 'em."
This is just one of the benefits of working with guys who've been making films since I was in Huggies -- the vast repository of know-how and experience they offer. There's nary a problem that either Vilmos, Dicky or Bill O'Leary (Roger Deakin’s Gaffer -- or chief lighting technician -- who Vilmos secured for this flick) can't suss out. I tell ya', we're so technically adept this time around, I feel like Spielberg -- only, y'know ... without the desire to replace the guns in my previous flicks with walkie-talkies.
Speaking of which, we wanted to use a clip from JAWS in JERSEY GIRL -- the shot of Quint being eaten by the shark. It was the focus of a short scene between George Carlin's character Bart and his granddaughter (the titular Jersey Girl) in which he used the movie to instruct the child of the perils of swimming at the beach. The word came back from Amblin that Spielberg didn't want to license scenes featuring the shark, based on the primitive special effects in the flick (i.e., the shark looks fake).
When we chose another scene that didn't showcase Bruce himself (we opted for the death of the raft-riding Kintner boy -- the one whose remains the Mayor didn't want to see spill out all over the dock), the word came back that Spielberg didn't want to license the use of any scenes in JAWS that reminded people how scary the movie was.
The long and short of this story, kids?
I smell a digitally manipulated re-release of JAWS in which the shark menaces Amity with a walkie-talkie.
DAY ONE -- THE BIG SCENE
Up first, my wife made out with Jason Biggs, as Affleck looked on. Shortly after that, we started shooting the actual scene.
We started with a humorous, light scene, set at the Christmas Party thrown annually by the music division of Mandel/Kirschner, the publicity firm that Ollie Trinke' (Ben's character) works for. The bit serves as an introduction to Biggsy's character, Arthur Brickman -- Ollie's right-hand man. Jen (my Jen, not Affleck's Jen) plays Susan, Arthur's office paramour, and the two of them turned in ace performances that acted as a sort of palate-cleanser for the moment that follows: the meeting of Ollie Trinke' and Gertrude Steiney (Jen Lopez).
If you're ever shooting a movie about two people falling in love, I can't urge you strongly enough to cast a pair of people who are actually falling in love. The chemistry between Ben and Jen is so palpable, you could almost bottle it and sell it as an aphrodisiac. Take after take, we watched Ben and Jen (who we couldn't have cast as love-at-first-sighters at a better time in their lives) flirt through a rapid-fire-dialogue dance of movie meet-cute. But this wasn't just art imitating life; somehow in the midst of all that smolder, they managed to provide us with a pair of performances that reminded this little black duck why he's always worshipped at the Altar of Affleck, and is now currently constructing a Lopez Basilica as we speak. Honestly, the performances they gave were nothing short of spellbinding.
Take after take, Jen offered up a myriad of options -- so much so, that when the time comes, it's a tough scene to cut. Every time we rolled, while delivering the same scripted lines, Jen provided something new, delicious, and real to choose from. I almost want to include three or four different versions of the same scene in the flick, just so the audience can see what we're seeing on the set. Even those familiar with how good she was in OUT OF SIGHT will be taken aback by how wonderful a performance Jen's giving in our little love story. And for the curious (or for those who'd believe what they read in the tabloids), Jen's not only a really sweet person who's easy to love (partly because she's very genuine, partly because of how very smitten she is with a guy I adore and think the world of), she's also the finest actress I've ever worked with to date.
But Bender's no slouch either -- far from it. The man's turning in what is, for my money, his finest hour yet -- which is saying a lot, as I've always felt his CHASING AMY and GOOD WILL HUNTING performances would never be beat. But not only has he beat 'em, he's bludgeoned the shet out of them and left 'em for dead atop the body of already strong work he's accrued since he first trod the boards for us as the guy who liked to fook girls in an uncomfortable place, way back in the day. Along with the charming, smart, witty work that defines all of his performances, Affleck's turned in some really moving stuff thus far as well. If his "I love you -- and not in a friendly way ..." speech in AMY brought tears to your eyes, bring a whole box of tissues when you go to see this flick -- because Ben's got a scene with the kid that'll just flat-out break your heart -- even if you hate children.
All the while, Vilmos has been rolling two cameras simultaneously, capturing different sizes of the same set-ups. It's a time-saving method of shooting coverage, but it also means that by day's end, we've easily shot 15,000 feet of film. But footage-burning be damned, this is beautiful stuff. Vilmos' moody, sexy lighting of our trusty production designer Robert "Ratface" Holtzman and Art Director Elise Viola's gorgeous Manhattan office and slow-moving camera crawls that lead to dazzling, killer close-ups make this the best-looking scene in any View Askew movie ever (big ups also go out to Diane Lederman, who fleshed out Ollie's world with her office décor, and Buster Pile, who built the set on the Naval Yard soundstage in our adopted city of Philadelphia).
By the end of week two, we'd shot Ollie and Gertie's post-introduction dinner, an intense and somewhat sad scene involving Ben and Biggs, Ollie and Gertie's first fight (of sorts), one of the three crowds in front of which Ben's gotta deliver speeches, a more dramatic-this-time-around George Carlin as Ollie's dad, Bart, the ever-genius Stephen Root and equally genius Mike Star as Bart's friends Greenie and Block, and stellar little newcomer Raquel Castro as the JERSEY GIRL in question. All of the stuff is dynamite.
But the week-two capper was a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. shoot of the flick's opening scene, the actual Christmas Party. Staged at the Top of the Tower (the 50th floor of a tall-ass building on Arch Street), this is the scene that introduces Ollie as he offers up a five- minute toast to his employees that concludes with an awkwardly warbled and impeccably danced rendition of a classic 80's old-school rap tune. Remember Spender's moves from "It's Your Birthday" in AMY? This blows that out of the water. Affleck clearly missed his calling as a Solid Gold Dancer. Christ on the Cross, if he didn't knock that scene out of the park!
My thanks go out to the tireless crowd who provided massive energy in that room for 12 hours, giving Spender something to work off of. Like the crowd in their sister scene from the Town Hall shoot the week before, these cats gave a tremendous collective performance, as good and lively by the last take as they were on the first.
I wish I had dish to write about -- like how shet's falling apart, or who's fooking with our movie at the moment. But the truth is, it's blowjos all around, as things couldn't be going more smoothly -- which may make for a boring column, but sure makes for a great movie.
---Check out http://moviepoopshoot.com/jerseygirl/ for the artice complete with uncensored swear words and pictures!
Cheers mate, didnt see this last time.
Ok POP for the last time...I'm sure some of you will want to read this.
POP - I know some people asked me to post this before when I did part 1, so I just want to make sure they see it.
Once again taken from Moviepoopshoot.com - Here is the second part of Lunch box's diary from the set of his next movie 'Jersy Girl':
JERSEY GIRL DIARY
By Kevin Smith
I guess I could get all hyperbolic and describe the production thus far in terms so incredibly glowing that the cynical and pessimistic reader will swear it all reeks of spin control. But rather than subject you folks to that ...
All right, fook it -- I'm gonna subject you folks to that.
JERSEY GIRL is, hands-down, the best movie we've ever made.
Granted, we're only in week two, but I feel comfortable going on the record with that confession. Now for some of you, calling this flick our best probably isn't saying much (as there are cats who feel we've never done anything cinematically worthwhile). For others, you'll never agree (the hardcore MALLRATS won't find much to love about this flick). But for me, as my jaw drops watching the performances spark to life while we shoot, as I marvel at the dailies every night, and smile widely when Scott and I cut the scenes together over the weekends, that's the impression I'm getting. This flick certainly isn't the funniest film we've ever made (far from it), but it's already the most visually rich affair, with the most thoroughly realized characters I've ever had the pleasure of watching any of my casts commit to celluloid. As we come to the close of week two of our scheduled 11 weeks of shooting, for the first time in my career, I feel like a full-fledged filmmaker, as opposed to just a writer who directs his own stuff.
Rehearsals went incredibly well. We were scheduled for two full weeks, but by the end of day one, it was clear that we could've started shooting the next day. In the midst of rehearsals, we took time out to head into Philly's famous Sigma Sound (where Bowie laid down tracks, many moons ago) to record a song for the big musical number in the flick.
Yes -- I said big musical number. Where's GLAAD now, as I prepare to unabashedly unfurl and let fly my drama-fag flag by showcasing my adoration of show tunes?
When the rehearsal weeks came to a close, we did a pre-shoot day, which technically would be Day One of the shoot, but it's classified as a Camera Test so as to not be reflected in the budget as part of Principal Photography, all while giving us a jump on the schedule. Essentially, the Pre-Shoot Day is a dress rehearsal for the shoot itself, as this preliminary day affords the cast and crew a hint of what it's going to be like to work together.
The most startling aspect of the pre-shoot day for me was that we did two beautiful crane shots. What's weird about this is that we've done maybe two crane shots total in all of our previous movies combined (all right -- really it's about five or six), and there we were, not even the first day of the schedule, and already Vilmos was making with the cranes.
The crane we tow around with us, created by our Key Grip Dicky Deats, is an amazing and storied piece of equipment, which won its maker an Academy Award for Technical Achievement back in '83. Dubbed "The Little Big Crane,” it lives on our Grip truck and was constructed in fairly easy-to-transport pieces (but, mind you -- this is coming from a guy who just watches Grips move shoot around; so for all I know, those pieces are, in reality, heavy as fook) that can be assembled rather quickly at any location. In other words, we've got this crane that's so pliable, we could take it up the elevator to the 50th floor of a skyscraper (which we've already done), or throw it together to make a simple shot of a dude walking from his car to his front door look far more impressive than the act really is.
There's one Little Big Crane shot in particular -- a crane-into-a-closeup of Raquel -- that's so gorgeous and powerful, it changes the shape of the script altogether. After watching it a few times, I opted to drop two smaller scenes that precede it, so as to make that shot the first moment we see Raquel's character in the movie. Granted, the cut-before-we-shot-'em scenes weren't that long (maybe a half-page each), but still -- me cutting dialogue out in favor of visuals? Letting pictures tell a story instead of words? That's akin to Hitler saying "The Jews ain't so bad. Let's turn the Reich over to 'em."
This is just one of the benefits of working with guys who've been making films since I was in Huggies -- the vast repository of know-how and experience they offer. There's nary a problem that either Vilmos, Dicky or Bill O'Leary (Roger Deakin’s Gaffer -- or chief lighting technician -- who Vilmos secured for this flick) can't suss out. I tell ya', we're so technically adept this time around, I feel like Spielberg -- only, y'know ... without the desire to replace the guns in my previous flicks with walkie-talkies.
Speaking of which, we wanted to use a clip from JAWS in JERSEY GIRL -- the shot of Quint being eaten by the shark. It was the focus of a short scene between George Carlin's character Bart and his granddaughter (the titular Jersey Girl) in which he used the movie to instruct the child of the perils of swimming at the beach. The word came back from Amblin that Spielberg didn't want to license scenes featuring the shark, based on the primitive special effects in the flick (i.e., the shark looks fake).
When we chose another scene that didn't showcase Bruce himself (we opted for the death of the raft-riding Kintner boy -- the one whose remains the Mayor didn't want to see spill out all over the dock), the word came back that Spielberg didn't want to license the use of any scenes in JAWS that reminded people how scary the movie was.
The long and short of this story, kids?
I smell a digitally manipulated re-release of JAWS in which the shark menaces Amity with a walkie-talkie.
DAY ONE -- THE BIG SCENE
Up first, my wife made out with Jason Biggs, as Affleck looked on. Shortly after that, we started shooting the actual scene.
We started with a humorous, light scene, set at the Christmas Party thrown annually by the music division of Mandel/Kirschner, the publicity firm that Ollie Trinke' (Ben's character) works for. The bit serves as an introduction to Biggsy's character, Arthur Brickman -- Ollie's right-hand man. Jen (my Jen, not Affleck's Jen) plays Susan, Arthur's office paramour, and the two of them turned in ace performances that acted as a sort of palate-cleanser for the moment that follows: the meeting of Ollie Trinke' and Gertrude Steiney (Jen Lopez).
If you're ever shooting a movie about two people falling in love, I can't urge you strongly enough to cast a pair of people who are actually falling in love. The chemistry between Ben and Jen is so palpable, you could almost bottle it and sell it as an aphrodisiac. Take after take, we watched Ben and Jen (who we couldn't have cast as love-at-first-sighters at a better time in their lives) flirt through a rapid-fire-dialogue dance of movie meet-cute. But this wasn't just art imitating life; somehow in the midst of all that smolder, they managed to provide us with a pair of performances that reminded this little black duck why he's always worshipped at the Altar of Affleck, and is now currently constructing a Lopez Basilica as we speak. Honestly, the performances they gave were nothing short of spellbinding.
Take after take, Jen offered up a myriad of options -- so much so, that when the time comes, it's a tough scene to cut. Every time we rolled, while delivering the same scripted lines, Jen provided something new, delicious, and real to choose from. I almost want to include three or four different versions of the same scene in the flick, just so the audience can see what we're seeing on the set. Even those familiar with how good she was in OUT OF SIGHT will be taken aback by how wonderful a performance Jen's giving in our little love story. And for the curious (or for those who'd believe what they read in the tabloids), Jen's not only a really sweet person who's easy to love (partly because she's very genuine, partly because of how very smitten she is with a guy I adore and think the world of), she's also the finest actress I've ever worked with to date.
But Bender's no slouch either -- far from it. The man's turning in what is, for my money, his finest hour yet -- which is saying a lot, as I've always felt his CHASING AMY and GOOD WILL HUNTING performances would never be beat. But not only has he beat 'em, he's bludgeoned the shet out of them and left 'em for dead atop the body of already strong work he's accrued since he first trod the boards for us as the guy who liked to fook girls in an uncomfortable place, way back in the day. Along with the charming, smart, witty work that defines all of his performances, Affleck's turned in some really moving stuff thus far as well. If his "I love you -- and not in a friendly way ..." speech in AMY brought tears to your eyes, bring a whole box of tissues when you go to see this flick -- because Ben's got a scene with the kid that'll just flat-out break your heart -- even if you hate children.
All the while, Vilmos has been rolling two cameras simultaneously, capturing different sizes of the same set-ups. It's a time-saving method of shooting coverage, but it also means that by day's end, we've easily shot 15,000 feet of film. But footage-burning be damned, this is beautiful stuff. Vilmos' moody, sexy lighting of our trusty production designer Robert "Ratface" Holtzman and Art Director Elise Viola's gorgeous Manhattan office and slow-moving camera crawls that lead to dazzling, killer close-ups make this the best-looking scene in any View Askew movie ever (big ups also go out to Diane Lederman, who fleshed out Ollie's world with her office décor, and Buster Pile, who built the set on the Naval Yard soundstage in our adopted city of Philadelphia).
By the end of week two, we'd shot Ollie and Gertie's post-introduction dinner, an intense and somewhat sad scene involving Ben and Biggs, Ollie and Gertie's first fight (of sorts), one of the three crowds in front of which Ben's gotta deliver speeches, a more dramatic-this-time-around George Carlin as Ollie's dad, Bart, the ever-genius Stephen Root and equally genius Mike Star as Bart's friends Greenie and Block, and stellar little newcomer Raquel Castro as the JERSEY GIRL in question. All of the stuff is dynamite.
But the week-two capper was a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. shoot of the flick's opening scene, the actual Christmas Party. Staged at the Top of the Tower (the 50th floor of a tall-ass building on Arch Street), this is the scene that introduces Ollie as he offers up a five- minute toast to his employees that concludes with an awkwardly warbled and impeccably danced rendition of a classic 80's old-school rap tune. Remember Spender's moves from "It's Your Birthday" in AMY? This blows that out of the water. Affleck clearly missed his calling as a Solid Gold Dancer. Christ on the Cross, if he didn't knock that scene out of the park!
My thanks go out to the tireless crowd who provided massive energy in that room for 12 hours, giving Spender something to work off of. Like the crowd in their sister scene from the Town Hall shoot the week before, these cats gave a tremendous collective performance, as good and lively by the last take as they were on the first.
I wish I had dish to write about -- like how shet's falling apart, or who's fooking with our movie at the moment. But the truth is, it's blowjos all around, as things couldn't be going more smoothly -- which may make for a boring column, but sure makes for a great movie.
---Check out http://moviepoopshoot.com/jerseygirl/ for the artice complete with uncensored swear words and pictures!
JERSEY GIRL DIARY
By Kevin Smith
I guess I could get all hyperbolic and describe the production thus far in terms so incredibly glowing that the cynical and pessimistic reader will swear it all reeks of spin control. But rather than subject you folks to that ...
All right, fook it -- I'm gonna subject you folks to that.
JERSEY GIRL is, hands-down, the best movie we've ever made.
Granted, we're only in week two, but I feel comfortable going on the record with that confession. Now for some of you, calling this flick our best probably isn't saying much (as there are cats who feel we've never done anything cinematically worthwhile). For others, you'll never agree (the hardcore MALLRATS won't find much to love about this flick). But for me, as my jaw drops watching the performances spark to life while we shoot, as I marvel at the dailies every night, and smile widely when Scott and I cut the scenes together over the weekends, that's the impression I'm getting. This flick certainly isn't the funniest film we've ever made (far from it), but it's already the most visually rich affair, with the most thoroughly realized characters I've ever had the pleasure of watching any of my casts commit to celluloid. As we come to the close of week two of our scheduled 11 weeks of shooting, for the first time in my career, I feel like a full-fledged filmmaker, as opposed to just a writer who directs his own stuff.
Rehearsals went incredibly well. We were scheduled for two full weeks, but by the end of day one, it was clear that we could've started shooting the next day. In the midst of rehearsals, we took time out to head into Philly's famous Sigma Sound (where Bowie laid down tracks, many moons ago) to record a song for the big musical number in the flick.
Yes -- I said big musical number. Where's GLAAD now, as I prepare to unabashedly unfurl and let fly my drama-fag flag by showcasing my adoration of show tunes?
When the rehearsal weeks came to a close, we did a pre-shoot day, which technically would be Day One of the shoot, but it's classified as a Camera Test so as to not be reflected in the budget as part of Principal Photography, all while giving us a jump on the schedule. Essentially, the Pre-Shoot Day is a dress rehearsal for the shoot itself, as this preliminary day affords the cast and crew a hint of what it's going to be like to work together.
The most startling aspect of the pre-shoot day for me was that we did two beautiful crane shots. What's weird about this is that we've done maybe two crane shots total in all of our previous movies combined (all right -- really it's about five or six), and there we were, not even the first day of the schedule, and already Vilmos was making with the cranes.
The crane we tow around with us, created by our Key Grip Dicky Deats, is an amazing and storied piece of equipment, which won its maker an Academy Award for Technical Achievement back in '83. Dubbed "The Little Big Crane,” it lives on our Grip truck and was constructed in fairly easy-to-transport pieces (but, mind you -- this is coming from a guy who just watches Grips move shoot around; so for all I know, those pieces are, in reality, heavy as fook) that can be assembled rather quickly at any location. In other words, we've got this crane that's so pliable, we could take it up the elevator to the 50th floor of a skyscraper (which we've already done), or throw it together to make a simple shot of a dude walking from his car to his front door look far more impressive than the act really is.
There's one Little Big Crane shot in particular -- a crane-into-a-closeup of Raquel -- that's so gorgeous and powerful, it changes the shape of the script altogether. After watching it a few times, I opted to drop two smaller scenes that precede it, so as to make that shot the first moment we see Raquel's character in the movie. Granted, the cut-before-we-shot-'em scenes weren't that long (maybe a half-page each), but still -- me cutting dialogue out in favor of visuals? Letting pictures tell a story instead of words? That's akin to Hitler saying "The Jews ain't so bad. Let's turn the Reich over to 'em."
This is just one of the benefits of working with guys who've been making films since I was in Huggies -- the vast repository of know-how and experience they offer. There's nary a problem that either Vilmos, Dicky or Bill O'Leary (Roger Deakin’s Gaffer -- or chief lighting technician -- who Vilmos secured for this flick) can't suss out. I tell ya', we're so technically adept this time around, I feel like Spielberg -- only, y'know ... without the desire to replace the guns in my previous flicks with walkie-talkies.
Speaking of which, we wanted to use a clip from JAWS in JERSEY GIRL -- the shot of Quint being eaten by the shark. It was the focus of a short scene between George Carlin's character Bart and his granddaughter (the titular Jersey Girl) in which he used the movie to instruct the child of the perils of swimming at the beach. The word came back from Amblin that Spielberg didn't want to license scenes featuring the shark, based on the primitive special effects in the flick (i.e., the shark looks fake).
When we chose another scene that didn't showcase Bruce himself (we opted for the death of the raft-riding Kintner boy -- the one whose remains the Mayor didn't want to see spill out all over the dock), the word came back that Spielberg didn't want to license the use of any scenes in JAWS that reminded people how scary the movie was.
The long and short of this story, kids?
I smell a digitally manipulated re-release of JAWS in which the shark menaces Amity with a walkie-talkie.
DAY ONE -- THE BIG SCENE
Up first, my wife made out with Jason Biggs, as Affleck looked on. Shortly after that, we started shooting the actual scene.
We started with a humorous, light scene, set at the Christmas Party thrown annually by the music division of Mandel/Kirschner, the publicity firm that Ollie Trinke' (Ben's character) works for. The bit serves as an introduction to Biggsy's character, Arthur Brickman -- Ollie's right-hand man. Jen (my Jen, not Affleck's Jen) plays Susan, Arthur's office paramour, and the two of them turned in ace performances that acted as a sort of palate-cleanser for the moment that follows: the meeting of Ollie Trinke' and Gertrude Steiney (Jen Lopez).
If you're ever shooting a movie about two people falling in love, I can't urge you strongly enough to cast a pair of people who are actually falling in love. The chemistry between Ben and Jen is so palpable, you could almost bottle it and sell it as an aphrodisiac. Take after take, we watched Ben and Jen (who we couldn't have cast as love-at-first-sighters at a better time in their lives) flirt through a rapid-fire-dialogue dance of movie meet-cute. But this wasn't just art imitating life; somehow in the midst of all that smolder, they managed to provide us with a pair of performances that reminded this little black duck why he's always worshipped at the Altar of Affleck, and is now currently constructing a Lopez Basilica as we speak. Honestly, the performances they gave were nothing short of spellbinding.
Take after take, Jen offered up a myriad of options -- so much so, that when the time comes, it's a tough scene to cut. Every time we rolled, while delivering the same scripted lines, Jen provided something new, delicious, and real to choose from. I almost want to include three or four different versions of the same scene in the flick, just so the audience can see what we're seeing on the set. Even those familiar with how good she was in OUT OF SIGHT will be taken aback by how wonderful a performance Jen's giving in our little love story. And for the curious (or for those who'd believe what they read in the tabloids), Jen's not only a really sweet person who's easy to love (partly because she's very genuine, partly because of how very smitten she is with a guy I adore and think the world of), she's also the finest actress I've ever worked with to date.
But Bender's no slouch either -- far from it. The man's turning in what is, for my money, his finest hour yet -- which is saying a lot, as I've always felt his CHASING AMY and GOOD WILL HUNTING performances would never be beat. But not only has he beat 'em, he's bludgeoned the shet out of them and left 'em for dead atop the body of already strong work he's accrued since he first trod the boards for us as the guy who liked to fook girls in an uncomfortable place, way back in the day. Along with the charming, smart, witty work that defines all of his performances, Affleck's turned in some really moving stuff thus far as well. If his "I love you -- and not in a friendly way ..." speech in AMY brought tears to your eyes, bring a whole box of tissues when you go to see this flick -- because Ben's got a scene with the kid that'll just flat-out break your heart -- even if you hate children.
All the while, Vilmos has been rolling two cameras simultaneously, capturing different sizes of the same set-ups. It's a time-saving method of shooting coverage, but it also means that by day's end, we've easily shot 15,000 feet of film. But footage-burning be damned, this is beautiful stuff. Vilmos' moody, sexy lighting of our trusty production designer Robert "Ratface" Holtzman and Art Director Elise Viola's gorgeous Manhattan office and slow-moving camera crawls that lead to dazzling, killer close-ups make this the best-looking scene in any View Askew movie ever (big ups also go out to Diane Lederman, who fleshed out Ollie's world with her office décor, and Buster Pile, who built the set on the Naval Yard soundstage in our adopted city of Philadelphia).
By the end of week two, we'd shot Ollie and Gertie's post-introduction dinner, an intense and somewhat sad scene involving Ben and Biggs, Ollie and Gertie's first fight (of sorts), one of the three crowds in front of which Ben's gotta deliver speeches, a more dramatic-this-time-around George Carlin as Ollie's dad, Bart, the ever-genius Stephen Root and equally genius Mike Star as Bart's friends Greenie and Block, and stellar little newcomer Raquel Castro as the JERSEY GIRL in question. All of the stuff is dynamite.
But the week-two capper was a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. shoot of the flick's opening scene, the actual Christmas Party. Staged at the Top of the Tower (the 50th floor of a tall-ass building on Arch Street), this is the scene that introduces Ollie as he offers up a five- minute toast to his employees that concludes with an awkwardly warbled and impeccably danced rendition of a classic 80's old-school rap tune. Remember Spender's moves from "It's Your Birthday" in AMY? This blows that out of the water. Affleck clearly missed his calling as a Solid Gold Dancer. Christ on the Cross, if he didn't knock that scene out of the park!
My thanks go out to the tireless crowd who provided massive energy in that room for 12 hours, giving Spender something to work off of. Like the crowd in their sister scene from the Town Hall shoot the week before, these cats gave a tremendous collective performance, as good and lively by the last take as they were on the first.
I wish I had dish to write about -- like how shet's falling apart, or who's fooking with our movie at the moment. But the truth is, it's blowjos all around, as things couldn't be going more smoothly -- which may make for a boring column, but sure makes for a great movie.
---Check out http://moviepoopshoot.com/jerseygirl/ for the artice complete with uncensored swear words and pictures!